S&P 500, Dow industrials close at records

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average ended Monday at new records, fueled by continued hopes that the Federal Reserve won’t be in a rush to raise interest rates.

The main indexes booked their fourth straight day of gains, abetted by a central bank that last week reassured investors it will be “patient” about the timing and pace of rate hikes.

The S&P 500
SPX, -1.54%
gained 7.9 points, or 0.4%, to 2,078.55, closing at a record for the 50th time this year. This is the highest number of record closes in a year since 1995. Gains in technology and telecom stocks outweighed sharp losses in energy and health-care companies.

Gains were even larger for the Dow Jones Industrial Average
DJIA, -1.24%
which rose 154.64 points, or 0.9%, to 17,959.44. The blue-chip index closed at a record for the 35th time in 2014. All but three of its 30 components ended with gains.

“There seems to be an overall upward bias, but something rational is happening to the stocks. Trading action is not at all uniform, which is a good sign, as companies are being valued for their fundamentals,” said Kim Caughey Forrest, senior analyst and portfolio manager at Fort Pitt Capital Group.

Michael Arone, chief investment officer at State Street Global Advisors, said years of low interest rates are beginning to benefit consumers, with the fall in energy prices leaving many Americans with extra cash.

“The exciting news is that we are seeing signs of wage growth along with strong labor market, which is great news for consumers. And revival on Main Street will be good for Wall Street,” Arone said.

Stock-market volumes are expected to be thin ahead of the Christmas Day holiday on Thursday. Christmas Eve typically sees the lowest trading volumes of the year as investors check out early or take the day off. U.S. stock markets close at 1 p.m. Eastern Time on Dec. 24 and are closed on Dec. 25. But it’s business as usual on New Year’s Eve.

Data: Sales of existing homes fell 6.1% in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.93 million, the National Association of Realtors reported Monday. This is the weakest level in six months. Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected the sales rate to decline to 5.18 million in November from an originally reported 5.26 million in October.

The lineup gets much busier on Tuesday, when durable goods, the third revision of third-quarter GDP data, FHFA house prices, consumer confidence, new-home sales and personal income numbers are all due.

Movers and shakers: Gilead Sciences Inc.
GILD, -1.38%
slumped 14% after Express Scripts Holding Co., the largest manager of U.S. prescription-drug benefits, decided a drug from AbbVie Inc.
ABBV, -0.81%
will be its exclusive option for treating the most common form of hepatitis C.

Ocwen Financial’s
OCN, +0.00%
stock tumbled 27% after the company said that it will pay a $100 million civil monetary penalty to the New York Department of Financial Services to settle allegations of improper conduct.

Other markets: The ruble
USDRUB, +0.3123%
rebounded to 56.03 per dollar, compared with 59.46 late on Friday, although it is still down more than 40% against the dollar this year. Gold
US:GCG5
priced fell 2% to $1,172 a troy ounce.

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